Doctor Fizzwinkle smiled and patted the fur on Vixen’s neck. Outside of the office, the winds whipped furiously, as they did most of the time north of the Arctic Circle. In the office, though, the glow of fluorescent light and the smell of rubbing alcohol made Vixen feel secure and cared for.

“I’m afraid not,” he said. “The procedure you heard about is simple in principle―I would take DNA samples of you and Mr. Vixen, then analyze the cells to see your genetic predispositions, and manipulate the chromosomes to produce the calf that you and your husband desire.”

“Then why not?” Vixen said, stamping her hooves in a little dance.

“Well, everything is simple in principle,” the Doctor said. “But I’ve never done it before.”

I loved how this story blended humour with an exploration of genetic manipulation. We know this is something that's going to become possible for human progeny, and if we don't think about it and prepare in advance, we too, might get offspring that are nearly invisible to the NORAD Santa tracker.....

It looked like GM reindeer were just the next stage of evolution in the story. Rudolf's birth made the standards to be selected for Santa's team shoot through the roof. In the end, Vixen remarked that the new and strong always replace the old but I doubt things will ever be as routine as the old days at the North Pole. I like that the sleigh team were traditionally female. It still makes me angry to watch the old stop motion animation movie and see how sexist it is.